Apparatus and method for automatically separating magnetic from non-magnetic substances

ABSTRACT

An apparatus and method for automatically separating magnetic substances such as tableware from non-magnetic substances such as food and paper waste having a frame, pulleys mounted for rotation near opposite ends of the frame, an endless conveyor belt mounted over and carried by the pulleys on which unseparated substances may be placed and magnetic means mounted in one of the pulleys to establish a strong magnetic field through the conveyor belt thereby attracting and separating the magnetic substances from the non-magnetic substances and causing them to be retained adjacent the conveyor belt despite the removal of the nonmagnetic substances from the conveyor belt by gravity as it moves around the pulley. A number of inductor bars placed adjacent the pulley containing the magnetic means and near the underside of the belt to develop induced magnetic fields which attract the magnetic substances but cooperate with one or more circuit shunt bars carried on the endless conveyor belt at spaced distances along it to automatically release these substances as the circuit shunt bars come adjacent the inductor bars and shunt or short circuit the magnetic field from these substances. An apparatus for automatically separating magnetic and nonmagnetic substances having at least two endless conveyor belts supported at their opposite ends on upper and lower pulleys, respectively, disposed in vertical relationship, in which one of the upper pulleys contains magnetic means of sufficient strength to attract magnetic substances moving on the lower conveyor belt below that pulley to separate such substances from non-magnetic substances on that belt.

United States Patent 1191 Buford Dec. 16, 1975 APPARATUS AND METHOD FORAUTOMATICALLY SEPARATING MAGNETIC FROM NON-MAGNETIC SUBSTANCES [75]Inventor: J. Philip Buford, Park Ridge, 111.

[73] Assignee: Recon Corporation, Park Ridge, 111.

[22] Filed: Aug. 23, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 390,958

[52] US. Cl. 209/215; 209/216; 209/219 [51] Int. Cl. B03C 1/16 [58]Field of Search 209/214, 215, 223 A, 219,

209/218, 230, 216, 223 R; 198/41, DIG. l3

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 249,388 11/1881 Muller209/230 536,226 3/1895 McKinnon 209/218 1,144,383 6/1915 Rothert 209/219X 1,369,516 2/1921 Bethke 209/219 1,453,699 5/1923 Brophy 209/223 A X2,081,445 5/1937 Andrews.. 209/219 2,680,517 6/1954 Koerner... 209/2192,696,301 12/1954 Mojden.... 209/219 2,844,251 7/1958 Le Roy.... 209/218X 2,992,733 7/1961 Buus 209/219 FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 362,12412/1931 United Kingdom 209/230 433,616 8/1935 United Kingdom 209/219557,810 12/1943 United Kingdom 209/218 Primary ExaminerRobert I-lalperAttorney, Agent, or Firm-Haight, Hofeldt, Davis & Jambor 5 7] ABSTRACTAn apparatus and method for automatically separating magnetic substancessuch as tableware from nonmagnetic substances such as food and paperwaste having a frame, pulleys mounted for rotation near opposite ends ofthe frame, an endless conveyor belt mounted over and carried by thepulleys on which unseparated substances may be placed and magnetic meansmounted in one of the pulleys to establish a strong magnetic fieldthrough the conveyor belt thereby attracting and separating the magneticsubstances from the non-magnetic substances and causing them to beretained adjacent the conveyor belt despite the removal of thenon-magnetic substances from the conveyor belt by gravity as it movesaround the pulley. A number of inductor bars placed adjacent the pulleycontaining the magnetic means and near the underside of the belt todevelop induced magnetic fields which attract the magnetic substancesbut cooperate with one or more circuit shunt bars carried on the endlessconveyor belt at spaced distances along it to automatically releasethese substances as the circuit shunt bars come adjacent the inductorbars and shunt or short circuit the magnetic field from thesesubstances. An apparatus for automatically separating magnetic andnonmagnetic substances having at least two endless conveyor beltssupported at their opposite ends on upper and lower pulleys,respectively, disposed in ver tical relationship, in which one of theupper pulleys, contains magnetic means of sufficient strength to attractmagnetic substances moving on the lower conveyor belt below that pulleyto separate such substances from non-magnetic substances on that belt.

20 Claims, 8 Drawing Figures US. Patent Dec. 16, 1975 Sheet 1 of23,926,792

ow mm oQ mm 0% mm APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR AUTOMATICALLY SEPARATINGMAGNETIC FROM NON-MAGNETIC SUBSTANCES BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Thisinvention relates to an apparatus for automatically separating valuable,reusable magnetic substances such as tableware from quantities ofnon-magnetic substances such as food and paper waste.

The food industry has long been plagued with the costly andtime-consuming problem of separating valuable reusable items, such asmetal tableware from solid waste, such as food, paper and otherdisposable items. This problem is prevalent in any food servicefacility, such as restaurants, cafeterias, schools, prisons and so on,in which plates must be scraped and/or tableware separated from garbageby hand sorting or by scavaging, and especially in the airline industrywhere there is no opportunity for sorting in flight. Even when manualsorting or scavaging is carried out, it has been found that a largeamount of tableware is lost. For example, a set of airline tablewareonly lasts about seven flights. It is obvious that continued replacementof tableware is not only expensive, but economically wasteful. Somerestaurants have found that most missing tableware is lost, rather thantaken by customers, and that such losses run as high as $1,300 on atraditionally heavy day.

The present method of separating tableware from garbage or waste hasbeen to have kitchen personnel go through each tray or the combinedwaste and manually separate the utensils from it. This process is slowand time consuming, and, if attempted at too rapid a rate, will resultin increased losses of tableware. In addition, these methods requirelarge numbers of personnel who are not necessarily thorough in theirsorting, and wastes large areas such as the huge tiled room at the newOHare International Hotel in Chicago which is devoted to hand sorting.

Present magnetic conveyors and magnetic elevators have seriousdisadvantages and are not suitable for use in separating tableware. Suchconveyors generally have a fixed magnet which is placed behind a movingbelt and attracts magnetic substances such as cans. Such devices wouldmerely accumulate tableware, however, by stopping its movement. Theywould not separate it from waste also moving on a conveyor. Such deviceshave no means of automatically and positively releasing tableware and,in addition, if such a fixed magnet were not cleaned of tablewarecontinually by hand, its field would be reduced by each additionalaccumulated piece. Without any means for positively releasing substancesfrom the fixed magnetic field, prior devices have depended on asuccessive piece, such as a can, to knock prior cans out of the field.Unfortunately, the last can will always remain in the field if notmanually released.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides an apparatus andmethod to automatically, quickly and effectively separate tableware fromfood, paper or other waste at a faster rate than is now possible whileessentially eliminating loss of tableware.

It has been found that approximately 80% to 90% of the tableware now inuse, including that with wooden or plastic handles, is formed of amagnetic substance, that is, a material such as class 400 stainlesssteel or carbon steel, which may be attracted by a magnet. The presentinvention has been developed utilizing a conventional endless conveyorbelt which is supported between and carried around pulleys mounted atopposite ends of a steel frame. A pair of magnets are mounted inside theshell of one of the pulleys to establish a magnetic force fieldextending radially through the conveyor belt around that pulley. Thismagnetic field positively attracts magnetic substances such as metallictableware to the surface of the conveyor belt as the conveyor belt movesaround the pulley. As the belt is moved around, the food and paper wasteare removed from the belt by gravity into a suitable trash receptacle.The tableware, however, remains attracted to the conveyor belt and isthereby separated automatically from the non-metallic refuse. Thistableware is carried to a point where it may be conveniently releasedinto a receptacle of its own.

It has also been discovered that positive release of the tableware fromthe magnetic field created by the magnets may be provided by placing anumber of inductor bars longitudinally adjacent an inside surface of theconveyor belt near the magnets and generally in line with their poles.These bars are capable of being magnetically induced by the magnets tocreate an induced magnetic field extending toward the receptacle wherethe tableware is to be dropped. A number of circuit shunt bars are thenplaced at spaced intervals laterally across either surface or woven intothe endless conveyor belt so that they are perpendicular to the shuntbars. When these shunt bars come adjacent the inductor bars, they act askeepers to shunt the induced magnetic field of the inductor barsdirectly through the shunt bars thereby immediately releasing anytableware held by the magnetic field created by the inductor bars andallowing it to drop into the receptacle. This prevents accumulation oftableware at a point adjacent the magnets in the pulley while allowinguse of stronger magnets to eliminate chatter caused by the frictionalforce of the belt on tableware overcoming the magnetic force.

In a modified embodiment of the present invention, upper and lowerconveyor belts are used which are each carried on pulleys mounted inframes. The upper conveyor belt may be disposed along the lower one orat a desired angle to it with the pulley containing the magnets disposedabove a portion of the lower conveyor belt. The combined tableware andwaste are then placed on the lower conveyor belt or a bus traycontaining waste and tableware is directly placed on the lower conveyor.When the lower conveyor approaches the magnetic field created by themagnets in the upper conveyor, tableware will be attracted by the strongmagnetic field, extracted from the waste and brought adjacent to theupper conveyor belt. It will then be carried by this conveyor belt fromthe lower side of the belt onto the upper side of the belt where it maybe positively released and carried rearward to be deposited by gravityin a suitable container at the opposite end of the belt.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide anapparatus for quickly, efficiently and automatically separating magneticsubstances form nonmagnetic substances.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide an apparatuswhich quickly, efiiciently and automati- 3 cally separates tablewarefrom food and paper waste thereby eliminating hand sorting and scavagingcosts and tableware loss.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an apparatusfor automatically separating magnetic substances from non-magneticsubstances which provides a means for quickly and positively releasingthe separated magnetic substances at a desired point and time.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide anapparatus for automatically separating magnetic substances fromnon-magnetic substances which is simple in construction, easy to cleanand maintain and easy for even unskilled personnel to operate.

These and other important objects of the present invention will becomeapparent from the following description taken in conjunction with thedrawings illustrating preferred embodiments wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the apparatus for automaticallyseparating magnetic substances from nonmagnetic substances;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational schematic view generally illustrating theoperation of the apparatus for automatically separating magneticsubstances from non-magnetic substances shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the apparatus forseparating magnetic substances from nonmagnetic substances illustratedin FIG. 1, taken generally along line 3-3 of FIG. 2 and showing theradially extending magnetic field;

FIG. 4 is a side elevational schematic view of a portion of theapparatus for separating magnetic substances from non-magneticsubstances shown in FIG. 2, showing in detail the means for positivelyreleasing the magnetic substances;

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the pulley and magnetic means of theapparatus for separating magnetic substances from non-magneticsubstances shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a slightly modified version of the apparatus for separatingmagnetic substances from non-magnetic substances shown in FIG. 2 using asmaller diameter pulley to extend the travel of the conveyor belts intosmall clearance spaces;

FIG. 7 is a further embodiment of the apparatus for separating magneticsubstances from non-magnetic substances in which two conveyor belts areused and the tableware is automatically extracted by attraction to theupper conveyor belt; and,

FIG. 8 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the modified apparatus forseparating magnetic substances from non-magnetic substances takengenerally along line v8-8 of FIG. 6.

DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring now to the drawings, and, inparticular, to FIG. 1, one embodiment of the automatic tablewareseparating apparatus of this invention is shown in general at 10. Thisseparator 10 includes a frame 12 made from any sturdy, easy to clean andmaintain, non-magnetic material, such as stainless steel, having a body14 enclosing the sides of a conveying means 18 and supported by legs 13which also support shelves beneath the body. Normally positioned at oneend of the frame, directly in line with the conveying means 18, is awaste or trash receptacle 15 of conventional design. Supported on ashelf beneath the conveying means 18 is a tableware receptacle 16, alsoof conventional design.

Conveying means 18 includes an endless conveyor belt 20 formed of anysuitable smooth, easy to clean material such as an elastomer which maybe tensioned to present a relatively solid and continuous surface uponwhich the combined tableware and food and paper waste may be emptied orupon which trays holding such substances may be placed. A hopper 17 maybe also formed above body 14 and conveyor 18 to funnel combinedtableware and waste materials dumped therein directly onto the conveyorbelt to eliminate loss from the sides of the belt or outside of theseparator 10.

The conveyor belt 20 is supported between and carried by a first pulley22 and a second pulley 24 disposed at its opposite ends. First pulley 22is mounted on a nonmagnetic shaft 23 and second pulley 24 is mounted ona similar stainless steel shaft 25. The longitudinal position of secondpulley 24 and shaft 25 relative to the body 14 is preferably adjustableby a pulley takeup 26 to move shaft 25 relative to the frame 12 toadjust the tension in the conveyor belt 20. This takeup 26 may havethreaded adjusting members on each side of belt 20 to assure that thebelt tracks properly between the sides of frame 12 during operation.

Pulleys 22 and 24 are mounted for rotation relative to frame 12 onshafts 23 and 25 so that when they are rotated they will move conveyorbelt 20 over them in a desired direction. Conveying means 18 may bedriven by a conventional electric motor 28 which is adaptable toavailable power sources and which may be operatively connected to one ofthe pulleys either directly as shown, through a reduction gear, wormgear and drive gear, disposed in drive box 29, or through a drive beltor chain extending between the motor 28 and a sprocket on the outer endof the shaft 23 of the first pulley 22, or by any suitable means. Thedirect drive may be mounted outside and on either side of the conveyingmeans to permit easy access for repair of the drive or to allow loadingof the conveyor from either side.

First pulley 22 has an outer, stainless steel shell 36 mounted in spacedrelation to the shaft 23. Second pulley 24 is of similar construction.Inside first pulley 22, on shaft 23, however, are mounted twodonutshaped permanent magnets 32 which move with the shaft 23 and,therefore, with pulley 22 in an angular direction and which have likepoles adjacent near the mid-point of pulley 22. These magnets have mildor soft steel pole pieces 34 placed between them and over their endswhich are magnetically excited by magnets 32 to establish a magneticcircuit which significantly increases the strength of the magneticfield. The magnetic field thus established extends radially relative tothe shaft 23 and pulley 22 any desired distance, depending on thestrength of magnet used, upwardly through the stainless steel shell 36,as shown in FIG. 3. FIG. 3 shows that the lines of force of the magneticfield extend between the opposite end pole pieces of each magnet andinto the pole piece 34 at the center between the north poles of the twopermanent magnets. This particular arrangement assures that the magneticfield will be strongest at the center of the conveyor belt 18 since itis well known that a magnetic field has its greatest strength at thepoles of the permanent magnet.

As explained above, this magnetic field, which extends about the entirecircumference of the pulley in a radial direction, acts to physicallyseparate tableware formed of magnetic substances such as Class 400stainless steel from the non-magnetic food and paper waste. It is clearthat tableware, as used in this description, also includes any metallic,magnetic substances such as fruit or dessert cups, creamers and so on.Thus, as the pulley 22 is rotated in a counterclockwise direction, asshown in FIG. 2, the food and paper waste will, upon reaching the lefthand end of conveyor belt 20, fall into the waste receptacle 15, whilethe tableware will be held adjacent the belt by the effect of themagnetic field, even though the belt 20 has moved to the underside ofthe conveying means 18. Even tableware located on top of refuse orgarbage will be unscrambled as the belt moves around the magneticpulley, since the waste drops vertically while the tableware is drawnradially into the belt by the strong magnetic field.

In order to obtain timely and positive release of the tableware which ismagnetically held adjacent the conveyor belt 20, the present inventionmay include a positive releasing means formed by a number of parallelsteel inductor bars 40 extending longitudinally along the conveyor belt20 generally parallel to or in line with and having one end adjacent thesteel pole pieces 34. These mild or soft steel inductor bars 40 aremagnetically induced by the permanent magnetic circuit and establish alongitudinal extension of the radial magnetic field between them whichis of sufficient strength to maintain the tableware adjacent theconveyor belt 20 for a distance of travel of the conveyor belt 20 pastpulley 22 relative to the frame 12. The tableware receptacle 16 ispositioned below these inductor bars 40 and the tableware is suspendedby the induced magnetic field, above this receptacle, while belt 20continues to move. If the tableware were allowed to accumulate in thisposition, its mass would ultimately overcome or cause a reduction in themagnetic field causing pieces to drop prematurely and allowing contactbetween pieces which could damage them. To overcome this problem, aseries of steel circuit shunt bars 42 are placed laterally across theconveyor belt 20 at desired, spaced distances along its length. Theseshunt bars 42 are positioned to travel perpendicular to and acrossinductor bars 40. They are designed to provide a superior path formagnetism and thereby act as keepers for the magnetic field created byinductor bars 40. Thus, when a circuit shunt bar 42 is moved across theparallel inductor bars 40, it acts to short circuit the magnetic fieldto the inductor bars 40 by routing their induced magnetic field, whichextends outwardly from them, directly through the shunt bar 42. Shuntbar 42 extends laterally across conveyor belt 20 between the end poleplates 34 and is attracted and oriented in the magnetic field in asimilar fashion to the captive tableware. Thus, as shunt bar 42 movestoward the position where the tableware is held suspended relative tothe moving belt, it short circuits the induced magnetic field throughitself causing the pieces of tableware to be immediately released todrop directly into the receptacle 16. These shunt bars may be fastenedto belt 20 by a strong adhesive, or other suitable means, and spacedalong the conveyor belt 20 so that the inductor bars 40 will be shortcircuited and the tableware released before an accumulation of tablewareis built up on the conveyor. Moreover, since the magnetic poles of theshunt bars are oriented in the same direction as the poles in thetableware, i.e., north poles adjacent, the shunt bars will repel anypiece of tableware which may remain at tracted by magnetism adjacent theconveyor, and push it off the belt without ever physically touching it.

FIG. 6 illustrates a slight modification of the tableware separatingapparatus 10 shown in FIG. 1 which is adapted for use as anunder-the-counter separator, or to feed disposals or pulverizers whichhave a minimum height greater than the bottom edge of the conveyingmeans of FIG. 1. This separator, generally denoted at 50, includes afirst pulley 52 and a second pulley 54 mounted within a frame on shafts53 and 55, respectively, for angular movement relative to the frame andsupporting a conveyor belt 58 in a similar construction to thatdescribed above. Adjacent the first pulley 52, however, is a smallerradius auxiliary pulley 56 mounted on a non-magnetic shaft 57 alsoextending between the sides of the body of the frame, but posi tioned ata distance slightly greater than the total radius of pulleys 52 and 56from the shaft of first pulley 52. This first pulley 52, which containspermanent magnets and pole plates arranged in the same manner asdescribed above, will act to induce a magnetic field into smaller radiuspulley 56 which is preferably formed of three donuts of steel, or othersuitable magnetic material 60, aligned with the steel pole plates ofpulley 52 and spaced by non-magnetic material, such as aluminum 65, asshown in FIG. 8. The smaller radius pulley thus extends the magneticfield of the permanent magnetic circuit in the same fashion as theinductor bars previously described. This use of an auxiliary pulley 56allows the conveyer belt 58, which is similar in construction toconveyor belt 20, to be extended under a counter top, but above a refusereceptacle or garbage disposal 62, as shown in FIG. 6. Combinedtableware and waste may be scraped directly onto belt 58 as it is movedby the rotating pulleys through the permanent magnetic field and theinduced magnetic field to allow the waste to drop into the refusereceptacle and the separated tableware to be positively released by theinductor bars 66 and shunt bars 68, similar to those described above,into a tableware receptacle 64.

A modified embodiment of the apparatus for separating magnetic andnon-magnetic substances of the present invention is shown in FIG. 7.This embodiment, called a double conveyor separator and referred to ingeneral at 70, includes an upper conveying means 72 having an upperconveyor belt 73 which is supported over and carried by pulleys 80 and81 at its opposite ends, as described above. This upper conveying means72 is positioned in a frame and mounted over a lower conveying means 74which also has a conveyor belt supported between and carried by pulleys82 and 83 mounted at its opposite ends and supported by a frame. In thisembodiment, the pulley having the permanent magnetic circuit isinstalled in upper pulley 80. Thus, a radially extending magnetic fieldis estblished about the circumference of pulley which extends in adownward direction through conveyor belt 73 toward the surface of thelower conveyor belt 75. In operation, conveyors 72 and 74 are driven byone or more suitable driving means (not shown). Though movement of thesebelts in similar directions is illustrated in FIG. 7, the direction ofmovement is a matter of choice, the critical element in the constructionof this embodiment being the positioning of the magnetic upper pulley 80of the upper conveyor 72 over a portion of the path of travel of belt 75of the lower conveyor 74.

This embodiment is particularly adapted for removing the tableware frombus trays directly placed on the moving lower conveyor belt. This wouldbe desirable in airline operations so that the trays may be merelyremoved from the plane and placed directly on the lower conveyor of thisseparator. As the tray containing combined waste and tableware movesunder the magnetic pulley 80, the tableware is physically extracted anddrawn upward by a magnetic field established about the pulley 80 andattracted to the belt 73 of the upper conveyor 72. The separatedtableware is then carried to the upper side of the conveyor 72 where itmay be positively released from the field by inductor bars 90 and shuntbars 91 and then carried rearward toward the end of the conveyor whereit is allowed to drop into a suitable receptacle 95. In the meanwhile,the trays with the food and paper waste are carried toward the oppositeend of the lower conveyor 74 to a suitable trash receptacle 78 or tofurther sorting. It is clear that the upper conveyor 72 may bepositioned along the length of the lower conveyor 74, as shown, or anyother position depending upon space requirements. Conveyor 72 could bedisposed vertically relative to conveyor 74, and further inductor barsand permanent magnets added to separate and convey tableware upward intoa receptacle While this invention could use electromagnets, permanentmagnets are preferred because of their long life, strength and freedomfrom maintenance and electrical hazard. Material suitable for use aspermanent magnets include, but are not limited to, barium ferric oxide,ceramic magnets or alnico which has greater durability if hightemperatures are involved. The magnets used can be of any strengthdesired, increasing with the size of the operation and volume of wasteto be handled. The radial extent of the field will, of course, vary withthe size magnet used when placed in a circuit with the pole plates. Byway of example only, a magnet circuit generating a field approximately 3inches beyond the surface of the conveyor belt has been found adequateto handle combined waste and tableware at a rate in excess of 7 cubicyards per hour.

Stainless steel slider beds placed directly under the top and bottomspans of the conveyor belt may be used to help support the belt betweenpulleys, particularly when large amounts of waste and tableware arebeing carried. Such flat beds are welded to the opposite sides of theframe body 14. It is also desirable, in order to maintain the inductorbars in position, that these bars be tack welded to a stainless steelslider plate 41, as shown in FIG. 5, and capped by a non-magneticholddown bar 43.

To generally summarize, the method of automatically separating magneticand non-magnetic substances illus trated by this invention involvesplacing unseparated tableware or other reusable magnetic substances andrefuse on a conveyor belt, moving this belt through a radial magneticfield which actually attracts and physically extracts and separates thetableware from the combined tableware and waste, and positivelyreleasing the attracted tableware from the force of the magnetic field.

This invention not only represents the solution to a long-feltcommercial need but also provides a preliminary process that eliminatessteel, such as tableware, to permit the pulping and pumping of garbage.Such cleaned garbage may be disposed of or burned as an energy source tofulfill modern ecological demands and legislative requirements.

While this invention has been described in relation to preferredembodiments thereof, it will be apparent to those skilled in the artthat the structural details are capable of wide variation withoutdeparting from the principles and spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. An apparatus for separating magnetic substances from non-magneticsubstances including frame means, pulley means mounted on said framemeans and rotable relative thereto, endless conveying means disposedbetween and carried by said pulley means, said conveying means beingmovable relative to said frame means when said pulley means are rotated,drive means connected to at least one of said pulley means to rotatesaid pulley means and thereby move said conveying means, and magnetmeans associated with at least one of said pulley means and disposedwith respect to said conveying means to establish a magnetic fieldthrough said conveying means about said one of said pulley means whichpositively attracts said magnetic substances placed on said endlessconveying means and maintains said magnetic substances adjacent saidconveying means for a desired distance of travel of said conveying meansrelative to said frame to thereby separate said magnetic substances fromany non-magnetic substances placed adjacent said conveying means,inductor means mounted in a stationary position relative to said frameadjacent said pulley means associated with said magnet means anddisposed near the point relative to said frame means at which release ofsaid magnetic substances is desired, and circuit shunt means carried onsaid endless conveying means for movement therewith relative to saidframe, said circuit shunt means being spaced along the length of saidendless conveying means, said magnetic substances being held adjacentsaid endless conveying means as said conveying means is moved past saidmagnet means and over said inductor means by the magnetic field exertedthrough said conveying means directly by said magnet means andinductively by said inductor means until said circuit shunt means ismoved adjacent said inductor means to shunt the magnetic field into saidshunt means and keep it momentarily thereby releasing said magneticsubstances from adjacent said endless conveying means.

2. The apparatus set forth in claim 1 wherein said pulley means includesat least two pulleys mounted near opposite ends of an elongated frame,each of said pulleys having a shaft forming a central axis around whichsaid pulley rotates relative to said frame and an outer shell mounted inradially spaced relationship to said shaft and in contact with a portionof said conveying means to support said conveying means, one of saidpulleys having a number of magnets mounted on said shaft within saidshell with like poles of said magnets being axially adjacent andseparated by a magnetic material to form a strong, permanent magneticcore which emits a radially extending magnetic field through said shelland said endless conveying means about the circumference of said pulley.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein two pulleys are mounted adjacent oneanother near one end of said frame me ans, each of said pulleys carryingand suppo rting a portion of said endless conveying means, one of saidpulleys having a smaller diameter than the other of said pulleys, saidtwo pulley means being arranged relative to said frame to allow saidendless conveying means to be extended outwardly into a space lesser indimension than the diameter of said larger diameter pulley, said largerdiameter pulley having said magnet means associated therewith, saidsmaller diameter pulley having a central core having spaced inductorrings capable of having magnetism induced therein by. the disposition ofsaid magnet means in close association therewith such that said smallerdiameter pulley will emit an induced magnetic field to attract magneticsubstances placed on said endless conveying means.

4. An apparatus for separating magnetically attracted substances, suchas tableware and the like, from nonmagnetic substances, such as food andpaper waste, including lower conveying means having an endless lowerconveyor belt disposed between and carried by lower pulley meanssupported on a lower frame, said lower pulley means being rotatablerelative to said lower frame to move said lower conveyor belt relativeto said lower frame, upper conveyor means having an endless upperconveyor belt disposed between and carried by upper pulley means mountedon an upper frame, said upper pulley means being rotatable relative tosaid upper frame to move said upper conveyor belt relative to said upperframe, said upper conveying means having magnet means associated with atleast one of said upper pulley means and arranged to exert a radiallyextending magnetic field through said upper conveyor belt of sufficientstrength to attract magnetic substances to said upper conveyor belt,saidupper conveying means being maintained in spaced relationship abovesaid lower conveying means and disposed relative to said lower conveyingmeans such that said upper pulley means having said magnet meanscooperatively associated therewith is positioned directly above aportion of said lower conveyor belt such that when magnetic andnon-magnetic substances disposed on said lower conveying means arecarried under said magnet means associated with said upper pulley means,said magnetic substances will be attracted adjacentsaid upper conveyorbelt by the magnetic field exerted therethrough and then carried by saidupper conveying means to a desired point of deposit and therebyseparated from the non-magnetic substances disposed on said lowerconveying means, inductor means mounted in a stationary positionrelative to said upper frame adjacent said upper pulley means associatedwith said magnet means and disposed near the point relative to saidupper frame means at which release of said magnetic substances isdesired, and circuit shunt means carried on said upper conveying beltfor movement therewith relative to said upper frame, said circuit shuntmeans being spaced along the length of said upper conveying belt, saidmagnetic substances being held adjacent said upper conveying belt assaid conveying belt is moved past said magnet means and over saidinductor means by the magnetic field exerted through said upperconveying belt directly by said magnet means and inductively by saidinductor means until said circuit shunt means is moved adjacent saidinductor means to shunt the magnetic field into said shunt means andkeep it momentarily thereby releasing said magnetic substances fromadjacent said upper conveying belt 5. The apparatus set forth in claim 4wherein said upper pulley means includes at least two pulleys mountednear opposite ends of an elongated upper frame, each of said pulleyshaving a shaft forming a central axis around which each of said pulleysrotates relative to said frame and an outer shell mounted in radiallyspaced relationship to said shaft and in contact with a portion of saidupper conveyor belt to support said conveyor belt, one of said pulleyshaving a number 10 of magnets mounted on said shaft within said shellwith like poles of said magnets being axially adjacent and separated bya magnetic material to form a strong, permanent magnetic core whichemits a radially extending magnetic field through said shell and saidendless conveyor belt.

6. Apparatus for separating magnetic from non-magnetic substancescomprising: conveying means; input means for bringing a mixture ofmagnetic and non-magnetic substances adjacent said conveying means;drive means for causing said conveying means to move relative to saidinput means; first magnetic means producing a magnetic field ofsufficiently high intensity at a distance from said conveying means todraw the magnetic substances through the nonmagnetic substances and tohold the magnetic substances to said conveying means for a first lengthof travel thereof; second magnetic means positioned adjacent saidconveying means near the end of said first length of travel to hold themagnetic substances to said conveying means for a second length oftravel thereof beyond said first length, the positioning of said secondmagnetic means being independent of the movement of said conveyingmeans; and release means for periodically demagnetizing at least aportion of said second magnetic means in order to produce a positivedischarge of the magnetic substances from said conveyor belt.

7. Apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein: said first magnetic meanscomprises a permanent magnet; said second magnetic means comprises aplurality of inductor bars which are magnetically induced by saidpermanent magnet; and said release means comprises at least one shuntbar affixed to said conveying means to periodically shunt said inductorbars, thereby causing the magnetic substances to be released from theconveying means.

8. Apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein: said conveying means is anendless conveyor belt that passes over a pulley; said first magneticmeans holds the magnetic substances to said conveyor belt as it passesover said pulley, while the non-magnetic sub stances are allowed to fallunder the force of gravity; and said second magnetic means holds themagnetic substances to said conveyor belt beyond the point at which itleaves said pulley.

9. Apparatus as claimed in claim 8 wherein: said first magnetic meanscomprises a permanent magnet; said second magnetic means comprises aplurality of inductor bars which are magnetically induced by saidpermanent magnet; and said release means comprises at least one shuntbar connected to said conveyor belt to periodically shunt said inductorbars, thereby causing the magnetic substances to be released to fallunder force of gravity.

10. Apparatus as claimed in claim 9 and further comprising a secondpulley having a smaller diameter than said pulley and spaced outwardlytherefrom with said conveyor belt passing thereover, said second pulleyhaving a central core with spaced inductor rings which are magneticallyinduced by said permanent magnet.

11. Apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein: said conveying means is aconveyor belt; and said input means comprises a second conveyor beltpassing under said conveyor belt, said first magnetic means causing themagnetic substances on said second conveyor belt to be transferred tosaid conveyor belt while the nonmagnetic substances remain on saidsecond conveyor belt.

12. Apparatus as claimedin claim 11 wherein: said conveyor belt passesupward over a pulley; said first magnetic means comprises a permanentmagnet that holds the magnetic substances to said conveyor belt as itpasses over said pulley; said second magnetic means comprises aplurality of inductor bars which are magnetically induced by saidpermanent magnet to produce a magnetic field that causes the magneticsubstances to be conveyed past the top of said pulley; and said releasemeans comprises at least one shunt bar connected to said conveyor beltto periodically shunt said inductor bars, thereby causing the magneticsubstances to be released to be transported by said conveyor belt to adesired repository.

13. Apparatus for separating magnetic tableware from garbage comprising:a conveyor belt; input means for depositing a mixture of tableware andgarbage on said conveyor belt; a pulley; drive means for causing saidconveyor belt with the tableware and garbage on it to move around saidpulley; first magnetic means producing a magnetic field of sufficientlyhigh intensity at a distance from said conveyor belt to draw thetableware through the garbage and to hold the tableware to said conveyorbelt while said conveyor belt is moving around said pulley, the garbagebeing allowed to fall from said conveyor belt under the force ofgravity; second magnetic means positioned adjacent said conveyor beltbeyond the tangent point at which said conveyor belt separates from saidpulley to hold the tableware to said conveyor belt after said conveyorbelt has moved around said pulley, the positioning of said secondmagnetic means being independent of the movement of said conveyor belt;and release means for periodically demagnetizing at least a portion ofsaid second magnetic means in order to produce a positive discharge oftableware from said conveyor belt.

14. Apparatus as claimed in claim 13 wherein said first magnetic meanscomprises a permanent magnet arrangement located in said pulley toproduce a radial magnetic field.

15. Apparatus as claimed in claim 14 wherein said second magnetic meanscomprises a plurality of inductor bars which are magnetically induced bysaid first magnetic means to produce a magnetic field that maintainssaid tableware on said conveyor belt after it passes the bottom of saidpulley.

16. Apparatus as claimed in claim 15 wherein said release meanscomprises at least one shunt bar connected to said conveyor belt toperiodically shunt said inductor bars, thereby releasing the tablewareto fall under the force of gravity.

17. Apparatus as claimed in claim 16 wherein: said conveyor belt is anendless conveyor belt that passes between said pulley and a secondpulley; and said input means is a hopper for depositing the mixture oftable- 12 ware and garbage on the top surface of said endless conveyorbelt.

18. Apparatus for separating magnetic tableware from garbage comprising:conveying means; input means for bringing a mixture of tableware andgarbage adjacent said conveying means; drive means for causing saidconveying means to move relative to said input means; first magneticmeans producing a magnetic field of sufficiently high intensity at adistance from said conveying means to draw the tableware through thegarbage and to hold the tableware to said conveying means for a firstlength of travel thereof; and magnetic induction means positionedadjacent said conveying means near the end of said first length oftravel, said magnetic induction means being separate from andmagnetically induced by said first magnetic means to hold the tablewareto said conveying means for a second length of travel beyond said firstlength of travel, the positioning of said magnetic induction means beingindependent of the movement of said conveying means and a receptacleadjacent said magnetic induction means to receive the tableware fromsaid conveying means.

19. Apparatus as claimed in claim 18 wherein: said conveying means is aconveyor belt that passes over a pulley; said first magnetic means isassociated with said pulley to hold the tableware to said conveyor beltas it passes over said pulley; and said second magnetic means comprisesinductor bars extending beyond the tangent point between said pulley andsaid conveyor belt at the bottom of said pulley.

20. A method of automatically separating magnetically attracted,reusable tableware and the like, from non-magnetic food and paper wastein a quick and efficient manner including the steps of: placing theunseparated tableware and food and paper waste on a conveyor means;establishing a magnetic field by magnet means positioned adjacent saidconveyor means to radiate said magnetic field generally transversely tothe surface of said conveyor means;

moving said conveyor means and said unseparated tableware and wastecarried thereon into said magnetic field such that said tableware ispositively attracted toward said magnet means and thereby magneticallyseparated from said nonmagnetic substances;

extending said magnetic field by magnetically induced means in order totransport said tableware beyond the point to which it would betransported by the effects of said magnet means alone; and

automatically shunting the extended magnetic field through keeper meansperiodically brought adjacent said induced means, such that saidtableware is thereby positively released at a desired point.

UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CG ECTIONPATENT NO. 2 3,926,792

DATED 1 December 16, 1975 |N\/ ENTOR(S) J. Philip Buford It is certifiedthat error appears in the above-identified patent and that said LettersPatent are hereby corrected as shown below:

'Column 1, lines 19 and 20, delete the word "scavaging" and inserttherefore--scavenging-;

line 22, delete the word "scavaging" and insert thereforescavenging;

Column 2, line 65, delete the word "form" and substitutetherefore-from--;

Column 3, line 2, delete the Word "scavaging" and inserttherefore-scavenging;

Column 9, line 15, delete the word "conveyor" and substitutetherefore-conveying; and

Column 12, line 28, delete the word "second" and after the word"magnetic" insertinduction.

Signed and Scaled this [SEAL] Sixth Day of July 1976 A ttest:

RUTH C. MASON Arresting Officer C. MARSHALL DANN Commissioner oj'Parentsand Trademarks

1. An apparatus for separating magnetic substances from non-magneticsubstances including frame means, pulley means mounted on said framemeans and rotable relative thereto, endless conveying means disposedbetween and carried by said pulley means, said conveying means beingmovable relative to said frame means when said pulley means are rotated,drive means connected to at least one of said pulley means to rotatesaid pulley means and thereby move said conveying means, and magnetmeans associated with at least one of said pulley means and disposedwith respect to said conveying means to establish a magnetic fieldthrough said conveying means about said one of said pulley means whichpositively attracts said magnetic substances placed on said endlessconveying means and maintains said magnetic substances adjacent saidconveying means for a desired distance of travel of said conveying meansrelative to said frame to thereby separate said magnetic substances fromany non-magnetic substances placed adjacent said conveying means,inductor means mounted in a stationary position relative to said frameadJacent said pulley means associated with said magnet means anddisposed near the point relative to said frame means at which release ofsaid magnetic substances is desired, and circuit shunt means carried onsaid endless conveying means for movement therewith relative to saidframe, said circuit shunt means being spaced along the length of saidendless conveying means, said magnetic substances being held adjacentsaid endless conveying means as said conveying means is moved past saidmagnet means and over said inductor means by the magnetic field exertedthrough said conveying means directly by said magnet means andinductively by said inductor means until said circuit shunt means ismoved adjacent said inductor means to shunt the magnetic field into saidshunt means and keep it momentarily thereby releasing said magneticsubstances from adjacent said endless conveying means.
 2. The apparatusset forth in claim 1 wherein said pulley means includes at least twopulleys mounted near opposite ends of an elongated frame, each of saidpulleys having a shaft forming a central axis around which said pulleyrotates relative to said frame and an outer shell mounted in radiallyspaced relationship to said shaft and in contact with a portion of saidconveying means to support said conveying means, one of said pulleyshaving a number of magnets mounted on said shaft within said shell withlike poles of said magnets being axially adjacent and separated by amagnetic material to form a strong, permanent magnetic core which emitsa radially extending magnetic field through said shell and said endlessconveying means about the circumference of said pulley.
 3. The apparatusof claim 1 wherein two pulleys are mounted adjacent one another near oneend of said frame means, each of said pulleys carrying and supporting aportion of said endless conveying means, one of said pulleys having asmaller diameter than the other of said pulleys, said two pulley meansbeing arranged relative to said frame to allow said endless conveyingmeans to be extended outwardly into a space lesser in dimension than thediameter of said larger diameter pulley, said larger diameter pulleyhaving said magnet means associated therewith, said smaller diameterpulley having a central core having spaced inductor rings capable ofhaving magnetism induced therein by the disposition of said magnet meansin close association therewith such that said smaller diameter pulleywill emit an induced magnetic field to attract magnetic substancesplaced on said endless conveying means.
 4. An apparatus for separatingmagnetically attracted substances, such as tableware and the like, fromnon-magnetic substances, such as food and paper waste, including lowerconveying means having an endless lower conveyor belt disposed betweenand carried by lower pulley means supported on a lower frame, said lowerpulley means being rotatable relative to said lower frame to move saidlower conveyor belt relative to said lower frame, upper conveyor meanshaving an endless upper conveyor belt disposed between and carried byupper pulley means mounted on an upper frame, said upper pulley meansbeing rotatable relative to said upper frame to move said upper conveyorbelt relative to said upper frame, said upper conveying means havingmagnet means associated with at least one of said upper pulley means andarranged to exert a radially extending magnetic field through said upperconveyor belt of sufficient strength to attract magnetic substances tosaid upper conveyor belt, said upper conveying means being maintained inspaced relationship above said lower conveying means and disposedrelative to said lower conveying means such that said upper pulley meanshaving said magnet means cooperatively associated therewith ispositioned directly above a portion of said lower conveyor belt suchthat when magnetic and non-magnetic substances disposed on said lowerconveying means are carried under said magnet means associated with saidupper pulley means, said magnetic substances will be attracted adjacentsaid upper conveyor belt by the magnetic field exerted therethrough andthen carried by said upper conveying means to a desired point of depositand thereby separated from the non-magnetic substances disposed on saidlower conveying means, inductor means mounted in a stationary positionrelative to said upper frame adjacent said upper pulley means associatedwith said magnet means and disposed near the point relative to saidupper frame means at which release of said magnetic substances isdesired, and circuit shunt means carried on said upper conveying beltfor movement therewith relative to said upper frame, said circuit shuntmeans being spaced along the length of said upper conveying belt, saidmagnetic substances being held adjacent said upper conveying belt assaid conveying belt is moved past said magnet means and over saidinductor means by the magnetic field exerted through said upperconveying belt directly by said magnet means and inductively by saidinductor means until said circuit shunt means is moved adjacent saidinductor means to shunt the magnetic field into said shunt means andkeep it momentarily thereby releasing said magnetic substances fromadjacent said upper conveying belt
 5. The apparatus set forth in claim 4wherein said upper pulley means includes at least two pulleys mountednear opposite ends of an elongated upper frame, each of said pulleyshaving a shaft forming a central axis around which each of said pulleysrotates relative to said frame and an outer shell mounted in radiallyspaced relationship to said shaft and in contact with a portion of saidupper conveyor belt to support said conveyor belt, one of said pulleyshaving a number of magnets mounted on said shaft within said shell withlike poles of said magnets being axially adjacent and separated by amagnetic material to form a strong, permanent magnetic core which emitsa radially extending magnetic field through said shell and said endlessconveyor belt.
 6. Apparatus for separating magnetic from non-magneticsubstances comprising: conveying means; input means for bringing amixture of magnetic and non-magnetic substances adjacent said conveyingmeans; drive means for causing said conveying means to move relative tosaid input means; first magnetic means producing a magnetic field ofsufficiently high intensity at a distance from said conveying means todraw the magnetic substances through the nonmagnetic substances and tohold the magnetic substances to said conveying means for a first lengthof travel thereof; second magnetic means positioned adjacent saidconveying means near the end of said first length of travel to hold themagnetic substances to said conveying means for a second length oftravel thereof beyond said first length, the positioning of said secondmagnetic means being independent of the movement of said conveyingmeans; and release means for periodically demagnetizing at least aportion of said second magnetic means in order to produce a positivedischarge of the magnetic substances from said conveyor belt. 7.Apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein: said first magnetic meanscomprises a permanent magnet; said second magnetic means comprises aplurality of inductor bars which are magnetically induced by saidpermanent magnet; and said release means comprises at least one shuntbar affixed to said conveying means to periodically shunt said inductorbars, thereby causing the magnetic substances to be released from theconveying means.
 8. Apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein: saidconveying means is an endless conveyor belt that passes over a pulley;said first magnetic means holds the magnetic substances to said conveyorbelt as it passes over said pulley, while the non-magnetic substancesare allowed to fall under the force of gravity; and said second magneticmeans holds the magnetic substances to said conveyor belt beyond thepoint at which it leaves said pulley.
 9. Apparatus as claimed in claim 8wherein: said first magnetic means comprises a permanent magnet; saidsecond magnetic means comprises a plurality of inductor bars which aremagnetically induced by said permanent magnet; and said release meanscomprises at least one shunt bar connected to said conveyor belt toperiodically shunt said inductor bars, thereby causing the magneticsubstances to be released to fall under force of gravity.
 10. Apparatusas claimed in claim 9 and further comprising a second pulley having asmaller diameter than said pulley and spaced outwardly therefrom withsaid conveyor belt passing thereover, said second pulley having acentral core with spaced inductor rings which are magnetically inducedby said permanent magnet.
 11. Apparatus as claimed in claim 6 wherein:said conveying means is a conveyor belt; and said input means comprisesa second conveyor belt passing under said conveyor belt, said firstmagnetic means causing the magnetic substances on said second conveyorbelt to be transferred to said conveyor belt while the non-magneticsubstances remain on said second conveyor belt.
 12. Apparatus as claimedin claim 11 wherein: said conveyor belt passes upward over a pulley;said first magnetic means comprises a permanent magnet that holds themagnetic substances to said conveyor belt as it passes over said pulley;said second magnetic means comprises a plurality of inductor bars whichare magnetically induced by said permanent magnet to produce a magneticfield that causes the magnetic substances to be conveyed past the top ofsaid pulley; and said release means comprises at least one shunt barconnected to said conveyor belt to periodically shunt said inductorbars, thereby causing the magnetic substances to be released to betransported by said conveyor belt to a desired repository.
 13. Apparatusfor separating magnetic tableware from garbage comprising: a conveyorbelt; input means for depositing a mixture of tableware and garbage onsaid conveyor belt; a pulley; drive means for causing said conveyor beltwith the tableware and garbage on it to move around said pulley; firstmagnetic means producing a magnetic field of sufficiently high intensityat a distance from said conveyor belt to draw the tableware through thegarbage and to hold the tableware to said conveyor belt while saidconveyor belt is moving around said pulley, the garbage being allowed tofall from said conveyor belt under the force of gravity; second magneticmeans positioned adjacent said conveyor belt beyond the tangent point atwhich said conveyor belt separates from said pulley to hold thetableware to said conveyor belt after said conveyor belt has movedaround said pulley, the positioning of said second magnetic means beingindependent of the movement of said conveyor belt; and release means forperiodically demagnetizing at least a portion of said second magneticmeans in order to produce a positive discharge of tableware from saidconveyor belt.
 14. Apparatus as claimed in claim 13 wherein said firstmagnetic means comprises a permanent magnet arrangement located in saidpulley to produce a radial magnetic field.
 15. Apparatus as claimed inclaim 14 wherein said second magnetic means comprises a plurality ofinductor bars which are magnetically induced by said first magneticmeans to produce a magnetic field that maintains said tableware on saidconveyor belt after it passes the bottom of said pulley.
 16. Apparatusas claimed in claim 15 wherein said release means comprises at least oneshunt bar connected to said conveyor belt to periodically shunt saidinductor bars, thereby releasing the tableware to fall under the forceof gravity.
 17. Apparatus as claimed in claim 16 wherein: said conveyorbelt is an endless conveyor belt that passes between said pulley and asecond pulley; and said input means is a hopper for depositing themixture of tableware and garbage on the top surface of said endlessconveyor belt.
 18. Apparatus for separating magnetic tablewarE fromgarbage comprising: conveying means; input means for bringing a mixtureof tableware and garbage adjacent said conveying means; drive means forcausing said conveying means to move relative to said input means; firstmagnetic means producing a magnetic field of sufficiently high intensityat a distance from said conveying means to draw the tableware throughthe garbage and to hold the tableware to said conveying means for afirst length of travel thereof; and magnetic induction means positionedadjacent said conveying means near the end of said first length oftravel, said magnetic induction means being separate from andmagnetically induced by said first magnetic means to hold the tablewareto said conveying means for a second length of travel beyond said firstlength of travel, the positioning of said magnetic induction means beingindependent of the movement of said conveying means and a receptacleadjacent said magnetic induction means to receive the tableware fromsaid conveying means.
 19. Apparatus as claimed in claim 18 wherein: saidconveying means is a conveyor belt that passes over a pulley; said firstmagnetic means is associated with said pulley to hold the tableware tosaid conveyor belt as it passes over said pulley; and said secondmagnetic means comprises inductor bars extending beyond the tangentpoint between said pulley and said conveyor belt at the bottom of saidpulley.
 20. A METHOD OF AUTOMATICALLY SEPARATING MAGNETICALLY ATTRACTED,RESUABLE TABLEWARE AND THE LIKE, FROM NON-MAGNETIC FOOD AND PAPER WASTEIN A QUICK AND EFFICIENT MANNER INCLUDING THE STEPS OF: PLACING THEUNSEPARATED TABLEWARE AND FOOD AND PAPER WASTE ON A CONVEYOR MEANS;ESTABILIZHING A MAGNETIC FIELD BY MAGNETIC MEANS POSITIONED ADJACENTSAID CONVEYOR MEANS TO RADIATE AND MANGETIC FIELD GENERALLY TRANSVERSELYTO THE SURFACE OOF SAID CONVEYOR MEANS; MOVING SAID CONVEYOR MEANS ANDSAID UNSEPARATED TABLEWARE AND WASTE CARRIED THEREON INTO SAID MAGNETICFIELD SUCH THAT SAID TABLEWARE IS POSITIVELY ATTRACTED TOWARD SAIDMAGNET MEANS AND THEREBY MAGNETICALLY SEPARATED FROM SAID NONMAGNETICSUBSTANCES; EXTENDING SAID MAGNETIC FIELD BY MAGNETICALLY INDUCED MEANSIN ORDER TO TRANSPORT SAID TABLEWARE BEYOND THE POINT TO WHICH IT WOULDBE TRANSPORTED BY THE EFFECTS OF SAID MAGNET MEANS ALONE; ANDAUTOMATICALLY SHUNTING THE EXTENDED MAGNEETIC FIELD THROUGH KEEPER MEANSPERIODICALLY BROUGHT ADJACENT SAID INDUCED MEANS, SUCH THAT SAIDTABLEWARE IS THEREBY POSITIVELY RELEASED AT A DESIRED POINT.